Steine View of Brighton Royal Chain Pier

Aquatint, engraved, printed and published by the prolific local artist/printmaker, John Bruce, and published in his Select Views of Brighton, 1824.

The paper has the watermark ‘J. Whatman 1824’.

Bruce often reworked and republished his aquatints, and the next edition of this plate had smoke coming from the chimneys on the left, and more clouds in the sky above those buildings. In 1833 he reworked this plate again to show damage to the pier from the fierce storm of that year.

The text includes technical details of the pier’s construction, and a note of its estimated £30,000 cost. Of the local artists, Bruce was the most prolific producer of Brighton views and, on the publication line of this print which he has added at the end of the Pier’s technical explanation, Bruce tells us that he drew, engraved, printed and published this print. A frequent feature of Bruce’s work is that no other artist/publisher is involved and several of his prints have this statement of completely independent production.